Owners of Uncommon Ground in Wrigleyville announce plans to retire, search for new owner to take over
The owners of the popular Uncommon Ground restaurant, live music venue, and brewery in Chicago's Wrigleyville community announced this week that they're looking for a successor to take over the business.
Michael and Helen Cameron have owned and operated Uncommon Ground, at 3800 N. Clark St., since 1991.
"Thirty-five years of laughter, connection, and community have given us more cherished memories than we could ever count. We are forever grateful for each and every one of you — our incredible guests, our dedicated staff, and the neighborhood that has made Uncommon Ground feel like home," the Camerons wrote in a letter to Uncommon Ground friends, fans, and family. "Running a restaurant for 35 years is a true labor of love, and now we look forward to beginning a new chapter. In the meantime, we will continue operating as usual while we work to find the right operator to carry on the Uncommon Ground legacy."
As recounted in a 2001 Chicago Reader profile, the Camerons had been running a coffee kiosk at the Century Mall on Clark Street just north of Diversey Parkway, when one evening in January 1991, they stopped at a Subway sandwich shop then located at Clark and Grace streets and happened to notice a boarded-up storefront across the street.
They rented that storefront at 1214 W. Grace St., and Uncommon Ground opened six months later, the Reader noted.
The business went on to expand to the next storefront to the west on Grace Street, and then the corner storefront at the intersection with Clark Street. Uncommon Ground grew into a full-service farm-to-table restaurant, a celebrated live music venue, and a world-renowned brand that also includes Greenstar Brewing — the first organic brewery in Illinois.
The Camerons also now own the building, which houses six loft-style apartments on the second floor.
The sale of the business, at 3800 N. Clark St. just a block north of Wrigley Field, was described in a news release as a "turn-key" opportunity, in which a new operator can take over the business as a complete product.
Uncommon Ground notes that whoever takes over will acquire an eatery twice named the Greenest Restaurant in America by the Green Restaurant Association, having helped launch the country's first certified organic rooftop farm.
The buyer will also acquire Greenstar Brewing, which has won awards for its craft beers, a renowned intimate concert venue that hosts live music nightly, and a nearly 5,000 square-foot space that includes the brewery, a large sidewalk café, an outdoor beer garden, and two private dining rooms, Uncommon Ground said.
The Camerons would also consider selling the building to the new operator.
"Our first priority is to find a new operator, but I'm sure some people will want to acquire everything, so the building could be for sale as well," Michael Cameron wrote by email.
Michael Cameron said since announcing plans to retire and sell the business this week, there has already been a "tremendous" amount of interest.
The stage at Uncommon Ground has hosted the late Jeff Buckley, who appeared onstage in February 1994 in what the Chicago Tribune's Greg Kot called the best concert of the year. Andrew Bird, Howie Day, David Gray, Glen Hansard, Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles, Josh Ritter, and Train are just a few of the other well-known acts who have taken the stage at Uncommon Ground over the years.
A second Uncommon Ground location, at 1401 W. Devon Ave. in the Edgewater neighborhood close to Loyola University Chicago, closed in 2022 after 15 years. The Devon Avenue building, which sported a rooftop organic farm, has since been torn down.
The announcement from Uncommon Ground comes on the heels of another renowned Chicago live music venue being taken over by a new owner. The owners of The Hideout, at 1354 W. Wabansia Ave., announced last week that they were selling to a new owner, former employee Teri O'Brien.
The Hideout has been around under the same name — legally post-Prohibition, at least — in 1934. Since the mid-1990s, The Hideout has been a destination for live music, particularly indie rock and alternative country — eventually taking over the scene left behind when Lounge Ax closed in 2000.
Former owners Tim and Katie Tuten and Mike and Jim Hinchsliff have owned The Hideout for 30 years. New owner O'Brien said in a news release that the "soul" of The Hideout will remain unchanged.
